There’s nothing cozier than a carpeted floor. Carpet gives us this nice feeling of warmth, making our home feels homier. But the second carpet beetles invade our carpet, all the nice feelings go away, and all we have left are feelings of terror and disgust.
Carpet beetles, as the name implies, feed on your carpet material. Since they usually feast on wool, fur, felt, silk, leather, and feathers, your carpet is not only their target. They’re also eyeing your rugs, bags, coats, and other objects that are made from animal-based material.
How to Trap Carpet Beetles?
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They’ve ruined your favorite scarf. They’ve munched down a part of your gorgeous leather bag. Your child’s favorite toy is no longer cute. You’ve got to stop this mess, and now you are ready for battle. How to trap carpet beetles?
Although adult carpet beetles are not directly damaging your things, the first battle starts with them. If you don’t want to be trapped in an endless cycle of shooing away these pests, deal with the adult beetles who are responsible for reproducing the eggs.
Trap the adult carpet beetles before they set foot in your home. One of the ways to stop them from getting inside is by putting traps on your windowsills. Place sticky flypaper strips on your windows, or you can hang them on possible entrances to your home.
If these pests already made their way inside your house, place the sticky flypaper beneath your furniture, seldomly used drawers, and closets. Carpet beetle larvae prefer dark places that are secluded and rarely disturbed. Your basement may also be breeding carpet beetle eggs. Putting sticky flypaper may help in stopping them from laying their eggs.
Homemade Carpet Beetle Trap
Essential oils make useful traps for these pests. Peppermint oil or clove oil can repel or kill a carpet beetle in an instant.
Keep in mind that carpet beetles don’t just eat carpets. They eat almost absolutely anything they can find at your home. Before you apply this homemade trap, it is important to clean the area where carpet beetles are more likely to hide. As noted earlier, carpet beetles larvae prefer dark places. Take this chance to clean the corners of your shelves and the most secluded parts of your closet. Try moving your old clothes, coats, blankets, and comforters that you rarely use. If possible, dry clean your favorite linens before storing them again to make sure that you eliminate any larvae that may be lurking on them. Carpet beetles won’t strive on clothing that you often used as detergents can easily kill them.
In this cleaning spree, vacuum is your best friend. Since carpet beetle larvae love secluded places, it’s time for you to vacuum under the sofa and the furniture in your house. Of course, vacuum your carpet thoroughly, too. Pay attention to corners that are out of your vacuum’s reach if you don’t want to see them coming back in a few days.
After cleaning the potential hideouts, it’s time for you to apply your natural homemade carpet beetle trap. In a spray bottle, mix either of these two oils with water. Spray on the areas where carpet beetles are most likely to hang out. Spray on the edges of your carpet since these are parts that are often missed by the vacuum. Shelves in your closets where you place things that you don’t usually use are also a good place to spray this homemade trap.
Mothball traps are also one effective way to kill a carpet beetle. Mothballs attract carpet beetles which will eventually kill them. However, this will only work on enclosed areas, such as your drawers and cabinets. If you have pets or kids at home, take precautions when putting mothballs that are accessible to them.
Life cycle
Carpet beetles have four life stages: Egg, Larva, Pupa, and Adult.
Carpet beetles usually mate where there is light. A female beetle will usually lay her eggs near a potential source of food, such as a closet full of fur or wool or beneath a piece of furniture when indoors or a bird of nest when outdoors. It can lay 50 to 100 eggs at a time. These eggs will hatch between 8 to 35 days.
After a few weeks, the eggs will hatch into larvae. The larvae look like little brown brushes with bristles and are ⅛ to ¼ inch long. They move slowly, and this is when they begin to be pests by feeding on your clothing and furniture. Their presence becomes apparent when you start seeing threadbare spots on your carpets and holes in your clothing. They can stay as larvae for as long as two months and will molt numerous times.
Larvae are typically good survivors as they can thrive in almost any inconspicuous place in your house. This is when they look for food and feed on your pillowcases, sweaters, hats, sofa, or any other material they find satisfying.
After a few months, the larvae will enter the pupal stage. In the spring, then an adult carpet beetle emerges, and the cycle begins again. Common adult carpet beetles are usually ⅙ to ⅛ inch long. These oval-shaped pests have six legs, a set of wings, and antennae.
Do the carpet beetles live in the beds?
The only good thing about carpet beetles is that they don’t live in your beds. They will not live in your mattress as bed bugs do, and they don’t find humans appetizing.
However, depending on the material of your bed, they will feed on the fabric in and around your bed. As noted earlier, carpet beetle larvae are attracted to animal-based products. They can target your pillows, sheets, blanket, and comforters, so it is advisable to wash these things regularly to avoid giving them a feast.
Also Read: How To Get Rid Of Carpet Beetle Larvae Naturally
Do Carpet Beetles live in walls?
You can see them crawling on flat surfaces, and yes, they can live in walls, especially when there are dead insects in these wall cracks and holes. Since carpet beetles are hungry pests, they can live in places where they can remain satiated and inconspicuous at the same time.
